Playing Consoles on Tvs

Optimus Prime

Just a couple of questions re the best way to display old consoles on tvs. is there other cables you can get that display them better? I currently have two old crts i use to play them on.

Nes is connected into the "pipe"
Megadrive is connected into the "pipe"
GameCube is connected via rgb scart
N64 is connected with scart i think.

Any better ways to connect these up?

Atavan-Halen

Get some scart cables for the megadrive anyway! The pipe you're referring to would be rf and gives a really bad picture quality. Some new cables shouldn't cost you more than a tenner each ok eBay.

o1s1n

RF/pipe is really really awful. Don't use any of them on any console ever.

Nes - AV cables (doesn't support rgb scart)
Megadrive - rgb scart
GameCube -you've already got that one sorted
N64 - Like the nes, doesn't support rgb scart. So get some AV cables.

pasta-solo

I found the following thread very helpful;

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055982663&highlight=cables

Its amazing how much difference using the best cables can make, its not something I even considered before starting to follow this forum, and I feel like I've come out of the dark ages into a time of wonderful RGB goodness! Thanks guys!

Jimmy Bottlehead

What would you guys recommend for a PS1 video cable? From the other thread, RGB seems the way to go?
Also, are cheap ebay cables any good or is it better to get an official PS1/PS2 cable?

Retr0gamer

RGB for PS1 as well. If the console supports RGB then use RGB. I'm pretty sure that there should be some cables going cheap online and also the PS2 and PS3 RGB cables work with the PS1.

Optimus Prime

Looks like i have a few cables to buy so!

Retr0gamer

I'll take a guess that the Gamecube isn't connected by RGB but by something like this which isn't RGB:

http://www.allaboutsymbian.com/images/features/articlescartadaptor.jpg

GEt yourself an RGB scart cable for the GC because it looks stunning in RGB.

Optimus Prime

yeh its the 3 cables going into a scart connection like that.

Retr0gamer

keithgeo wrote: »

yeh its the 3 cables going into a scart connection like that.

Sort that out and get an RGB cable

Jimmy Bottlehead

Sorry to drag this up again guys, I should have mentioned I've a PSone which seems to be a pain to get compatable AV cables for. As I'm a tad hopeless at the AV side of things, can someone link me to a good AV cable for PSone (not original Playstation, as I think that AV connection is different?) on either Amazon or eBay?
Thanks!

o1s1n

From auction links it seems the PSone and Playstation AV connection are the same? I've never tried to connect my PSone up to the tv though as I play it through the LCD attached to it.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/PS-RGB-Scart-AV-Cable-PSONE-PS1-/110595724930?pt=UK_VintageComputing_RL&hash=item19c004d682

Might want to hold off on buying that until someone can confirm.

Retr0gamer

If they are the same as the bog standard PS1 cables then PS2 and PS3 cables will work as well. Also for the love of god don't get AV, get RGB scart!

Jimmy Bottlehead

Retr0gamer wrote: »

If they are the same as the bog standard PS1 cables then PS2 and PS3 cables will work as well. Also for the love of god don't get AV, get RGB scart!

That's the thing, I'm not sure if the PSone video port is the same as the PS1 port.

MontgomeryClift

It is. The PS1, PSOne, and PS2 ports can use the same cables.

Jimmy Bottlehead

Awesome, cheers for that!

Joe Musashi

I'm looking to get an RGB scart cable for the PS1 at the moment. Is this one pretty much the same as the one linked to above? I thought I'd ask first so I don't end up getting a worse one.

What cables should you be using for the XBox? I have the red, white, and yellow (component or composite?) cables for it. They came with the console.

Retr0gamer

Get RGB scart for everything!

That PS2 cable might be a bit dodgy, might be best to get an official one.

o1s1n

Just bought an RGB cable for my XBox 1. Realized I've been playing Steel Batalion through AV! No wonder it looked so fuzzy.

If anyone is looking for one, this guy is selling them for pretty damn cheap -

http://cgi.ebay.ie/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190460338848

pasta-solo

Cheers Oisin, just ordered one for the Xbox. Hoping my Dreamcast RGB arrives tomorrow, picked up a Dreamcast in the Rage recently and I feel I'd be doing it an injustice by playing it with the rf cable that came with it.

o1s1n

Excellent, all you need now is a Steel Batalion kit and you're sorted

The Dreamcast does indeed look lovely in RGB. I can't believe Sega distributed the console with only an rf cable. Surely companies want their console/games to look as good as possible? I never understood that.

ambro25

pasta-solo wrote: »

Hoping my Dreamcast RGB arrives tomorrow, picked up a Dreamcast in the Rage recently and I feel I'd be doing it an injustice by playing it with the rf cable that came with it.

You'll still be doing it an injustice, until you get a VGA cable for it and use it with a PC monitor or a LCD/Plasma TV with VGA-in (preferably LED, for colour/contrast vibrancy)

o1s1n

I think the differece is something like this.

RF-> RGB is like upgrading from poxy half tuned in static RTE via a coathanger in the back of your tv to colour digital.

RGB-> VGA is like upgrading from digital to HD.

HD is really nice, but the difference in picture quality is nowhere near the leap from tuned in arial to digital.

Dreamcast RGB still does look beautiful. I've hung onto an RGB cable for when I want to play HOTD on my CRT. VGA for everything else. But if you can't get a VGA box then RGB should do you fine.

Myrddin

ambro25 wrote: »

(preferably LED, for colour/contrast vibrancy)

If it's colour/contrast vibrancy you want, you need an SUV of the living room...(Plasma), bloody enviromentalists :rolleyes: But I'd argue it's serious overkill for a Dreamcast. A 21" 4:3 (16:9 if the DC supports it) CRT (LCD if 16:9) computer monitor would be Dreamcast heaven :cool:

ambro25

EnterNow wrote: »

If it's colour/contrast vibrancy you want, you need an SUV of the living room

Eh?

EnterNow wrote: »

...(Plasma), bloody enviromentalists :rolleyes:

I'm much less pro-plasma these days, having progressed from a (admittedly 3 year old) Panasonic plasma panel to an LG LE8500 series (full LED with local dimming) this last December.

Now, from that experience, Kuro (of course) and high-end plasma panels may still have the edge (...just), but the traditional LCD-vs-Plasma debate (as regards colour/contrast, esp. blacks) is definitely nowhere near as clear-cut as it used to be.

EnterNow wrote: »

But I'd argue it's serious overkill for a Dreamcast. A 21" 4:3 (16:9 if the DC supports it) CRT (LCD if 16:9) computer monitor would be Dreamcast heaven :cool:

More or less agreed. I've used a 4:3 17" TFT for years, and am now using a 16:9 22" LED (BenQ eco series). I run both a 360 in HDMI and the DC in VGA (bordered for most games) through the BenQ, and the neighbour was asking me where can he buy/get Powerstone for the 360 (he thought the 360 was running it ).

FYI, Dreamcast games that support widescreen (the 16:9 ratio needs to be toggled in the game menu/options):

• Donald Duck's Quack Attack
• F355 Challenge
• Metropolis Street Racer (16:9 = unlockable feature)
• NASCAR Thunder
• Rayman 2
• Star Lancer
• Test Drive V-Rally
• Tokyo Highway Challenge 2
• Toy Commander
• Toy Racer
• Trickstyle
• Wacky Races

pasta-solo

ambro25 wrote: »

You'll still be doing it an injustice, until you get a VGA cable for it and use it with a PC monitor or a LCD/Plasma TV with VGA-in (preferably LED, for colour/contrast vibrancy)

But the VGA box seems so expensive, I'm not sure I can justify buying one...

Although this one is kinda cheap... http://cgi.ebay.ie/Dream-Cast-VGA-Box-Brand-New-Gift-Box-Pack-/270700111126?pt=UK_VideoGames_VideoGameAccessories_VideoGameAccessories_JN&hash=item3f06fbe516#ht_1764wt_1139

What are you guys doing to me? I remember when I was perfectly happy knowing nothing about RGB or VGA!!!

Retr0gamer

ambro25 wrote: »

Now, from that experience, Kuro (of course) and high-end plasma panels may still have the edge (...just), but the traditional LCD-vs-Plasma debate (as regards colour/contrast, esp. blacks) is definitely nowhere near as clear-cut as it used to be.

It's much better now but LCDs and LEDs still have a big problem. I find as long as the screen needs to be backlit the black levels are just bad and very noticeable.

o1s1n

pasta-solo wrote: »

But the VGA box seems so expensive, I'm not sure I can justify buying one...

Although this one is kinda cheap... http://cgi.ebay.ie/Dream-Cast-VGA-Box-Brand-New-Gift-Box-Pack-/270700111126?pt=UK_VideoGames_VideoGameAccessories_VideoGameAccessories_JN&hash=item3f06fbe516#ht_1764wt_1139

What are you guys doing to me? I remember when I was perfectly happy knowing nothing about RGB or VGA!!!

That's the one I have and always tell people to get. It works perfect.

On the subject of Dreamcasts and monitors, does anyone know where to get a rotatable monitor stand? I've been looking for one for a while but there doesn't seem to be many available and the ones that are are really expensive. My monitor is currently in a vertical position..propped up against the wall! Not the safest thing in the world.

ambro25

Retr0gamer wrote:

It's much better now but LCDs and LEDs still have a big problem. I find as long as the screen needs to be backlit the black levels are just bad and very noticeable.

You need to read a few reviews of the LG I got (47LE8500). The blacks are 'so' black, in the dark I can't see where the picture ends and the frame starts. Blacks on that are easily as good as blacks on the Panny panel I used to have, and you have to bear in mind that the LED LG is glass-fronted when the Panny plasma wasn't! Local dimming does that, and I remember right, this feature is now available for both full and edge-lit LEDs.

Still a premium price TV for sure, very much so compared to 3D sets (but I can't see 'fake 3D' (movies/TVs) so decided -after very extensive reads/research- for the best 2D LED about at the time), but I'd expect that tech should be coming down in price and across more makes/models/sizes very soon.

o1s1n wrote:

On the subject of Dreamcasts and monitors, does anyone know where to get a rotatable monitor stand?

Isn't that feature usually built in or with the monitor? I used to have a rotatable 17" LCD (4:3) back in 2003 at work, branded (can't remember which, but ViewSonic or somesuch), as it was easier to work with a full A4 displayed in 'rotated landscape' than with page scaling through software. Wasn't that much either (at the time), about £250 or so if I remember right. The rotation mechanism was built-in the stand which came with the monitor, along with a special install/app CD.

o1s1n

I have an LCD widescreen monitor hooked up to the Dreamcast but it doesn't have a rotatable stand. So I literally had to just take it, rotate it and lean it up against the wall.

You can rotate all LCDs. I've had this rotated a long time now and it works fine.

Just need to get a damn stand!

Myrddin

ambro25 wrote: »

Eh?

Havn't you heard that gem yet? It came from the eco-heroes (like eco-warriors whom I've nothing against, but these guys just havn't a clue). Yep, apparently Plasma tv's are the SUV's of the living room.

ambro25

o1s1n wrote: »

Just need to get a damn stand!

Get some cheap parts and make one?

EnterNow wrote: »

Havn't you heard that gem yet? It came from the eco-heroes (like eco-warriors whom I've nothing against, but these guys just havn't a clue). Yep, apparently Plasma tv's are the SUV's of the living room.

Now that's a LOL!

So what do these eco-heroes make of 32"+ CRTs, then? Or are they maintaining a conspicuous silence about the innumerable, power-hungrier legacy sets still in use? The fact that broadcast developments (e.g. Freeview/Freeview HD/Freesat here in the UK) require additional power-consuming devices (no built-in decoder in most CRTs, earlier LCDs/plasmas, etc.)? Talk about the politics of envy! :rolleyes:

Sorry for O/T, and thanks for the laugh

EDIT: actually, not that O/T, considering many retroheads will still use/maintain CRTs for lightgun games or because newer TV sets increasingly do away with analogue decoding. We retroheads will soon be deemed a menace to the environment, I tell you!

Jimmy Bottlehead

Guys I still can't figure which cable is the right one!

My options seem to be:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/PLAYSTATION-PS2-PS1-RGB-AV-TV-CABLE-SCART-NEW-Joytech-/130369774095?pt=UK_VideoGames_VideoGameAccessories_VideoGameAccessories_JN&hash=item1e5aa4e20f

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/JOYTECH-FUSION-RGB-SCART-CABLE-PS2-PS3-PLAYSTATION-2-3-/370255048165?pt=UK_VideoGames_VideoGameAccessories_VideoGameAccessories_JN&hash=item5634ebade5

or

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/PLAYSTATION-SCART-RGB-TV-CABLE-LEAD-PS1-PS2-/280387834875?pt=UK_VintageComputing_RL&hash=item41486ad3fb

Which is best for PS1?

o1s1n

Well as someone clarified earlier, the ps1, ps2 and PSone use the same cable. So they all look like they'd work.

I'd go with this one -

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/PLAYSTATION-SCART-RGB-TV-CABLE-LEAD-PS1-PS2-/280387834875?pt=UK_VintageComputing_RL&hash=item41486ad3fb

Joe Musashi

About the Dreamcast, I've noticed the image is not still on my HDTV when connected with the scart cable, it shakes a bit. I'm thinking of getting the VGA box but it is kind of expensive. I need to buy the vga, audio and s-video cables as well. :rolleyes:

Anyway, watch out for that if you're thinking of using the Dreamcast with a scart cable on a HDTV.

o1s1n

Are you sure you have it going into the RGB scart socket and not the non RGB scart socket? (Many tvs only have one fully RGB socket)

For the VGA box, you just need a VGA cable and a 3.5mm jack. They're not that expensive. You should get one of those ones on ebay that comes in about €25

Joe Musashi

o1s1n wrote: »

Are you sure you have it going into the RGB scart socket and not the non RGB scart socket? (Many tvs only have one fully RGB socket)

For the VGA box, you just need a VGA cable and a 3.5mm jack. They're not that expensive. You should get one of those ones on ebay that comes in about €25

Yes, I'm sure I did have it in the RGB scart socket.

I remember reading on a Dreamcast forum many months back about this shaking. I can't remember the reasons for it though.

It seems to be fine on my CRT so I'll just use it on that until I get a VGA box.